Virgin River Season 5 Part 1 Review: Even Richer Than Season 4 Even if More Realistic and Painful

Cast: Martin Henderson, Tim Matheson, Alexandra Breckenridge, Colin Lawrence, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Annette O’Toole, Sarah Dugdale

Director: Monika Mitchell, Felipe Rodriguez

Streaming Platform: Netflix

Filmyhype.com Ratings: 3.5/5 (three and a half stars) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

The first 10 episodes of the highly popular romance series Virgin River Season 5 Part 1 arrive on Netflix on Thursday 7 September. As has often happened lately, the platform will release the two final episodes of this new season at a later time, in which we find all the major protagonists starting from nurse Mel, played by Alexandra Breckenridge to her beloved Jack played by Martin Henderson. We then meet Hope (Annette O’Toole); “Doc” (Tim Matheson); Preacher (Colin Lawrence), Brady (Benjamin Hollingsworth), Charmaine (Lauren Hammersley), Lizzy (Sarah Dugdale) Brie (Zibby Allen), Denny (Kai Bradbury). Among the new entries, we find Kandyse McClure in the role of Kaya. Welcome back to Virgin River, the romantic and fictitious town located in Northern California born from the pen of Robyn Carr and transposed onto the small screen by Sue Tenney, who for the fifth season hands over the reins to Patrick Sean Smith, the show’s new showrunner.

It seems that Netflix has decided to divide into parts of its series a “trademark” because Virgin River Season 5 also comes in two volumes. The one in September, with the ten main episodes, which slowly opens the doors to autumn, and the one at the end of November, which will begin the Christmas period with the last two festive episodes. Unlike The Witcher 3, this could prove to be an interesting choice, since it covers a specific period, Christmas, and therefore has the potential to prove to be a nice gem, a gift that the production gives to its trusted supporters given the holidays. For the fifth season, we return to the main cast: Alexandra Breckenridge, Martin Henderson, Colin Lawrence, Annette O’Toole, Tim Matheson, Benjamin Hollingsworth, plus four new entries, Kandyse McClure, Susan Hogan, Elise Gatien and Paolo Maiolo.

Virgin River Season 5 Part 1 Review: The Story Plot

Let’s start where we left off. The fourth season of Virgin River ended with Charmaine (Lauren Hammersley) revealing to Mel (Alexandra Breckenridge) and Jack (Martin Henderson) that the twins are not Jack’s children. As in every season, the final cliffhanger does not act as an attack on the first episode of the following season, but only as a bridge for a story that will resume after it. And that’s how Virgin River Season 5 begins: Jack and Mel have to deal with Charmaine’s lies and the time they wasted being by her side, deciding to fully enjoy their love story once they have closed ties with the woman. Meanwhile, Doc (Tim Matheson) is dealing with a degenerative disease that has affected his eyes and threatens his future at the doctor’s office. Hope (Annette O’Toole) must instead deal with a citizen who is starting to question her abilities as mayor and will need all the support of her friends to not collapse and let herself be beaten down. Against the backdrop of the daily problems of Virgin River, fentanyl dealing, due to which Brady (Benjamin Hollingsworth) and Mike (Marco Grazzini) will put themselves in danger…

There is no peace for Mel and Jack. Now that the truth is out and that Jack knows he isn’t the father of Charmain’s twins, the troubled couple may be enjoying the anticipation of Mel’s little girl, but trouble is always around the corner in Virgin River. A village set in a dream landscape, among woods, peaks, rivers, and crystalline lakes, where however every inhabitant must face complex existential events. At the center of this new season of Virgin River, there will be, in addition to the events of Mel and Jack, the great difficulties of Hope who, after her illness, realizes that she is losing the trust of her fellow citizens as mayor, and those of Doc who finds himself facing a health problem having to decide about the future of his study, but also having to face a painful past. The narrative line in which the character of Brie is the protagonist will also be very important, as she finds herself managing a difficult situation and also a love triangle. But give trouble to Virgin River not even the youngest are exempt Denny and Lizzy will reserve us surprises, while we will also see an unlikely couple form, which also seems to work.

Virgin River Season 5 Part 1 Review and Analysis

Even though the showrunner has changed, Virgin River Season 5 does not lose its romantic soul, and once again opens the doors of the bucolic town surrounded by dream forests, rivers, and lakes. It is precisely the places that surround the characters, experiencing their dramas, that have been one of the show’s winning cards since it was born in 2019. Places where it is immediate to get lost among the beautiful landscapes, and which allow you to unplug from reality, to dive into a moment of lightness and carefreeness. The same ones who, thanks to the panoramic tours, manage to lead us immediately into the story, into the plots of the fairy tale. Ultimately, Virgin River has always been this: a fairy tale implanted in the real world, which doesn’t have too many demands other than giving us a few moments of pause and relaxation. Of course, there is no shortage of unpredictable plot twists. As well as the cliffhangers, which characterize the entire series and on which it lives, and which very often trace the paths of the soap opera without ever really transforming into the genre.

But in any case, this has never been a negative point, and it isn’t even for Virgin River Season 5, which seems, in this first and main part, to unbutton itself even more on the narrative events, consequently raising its dramaturgical level. The central episodes are the most significant ones and contain the most important challenge with which the protagonist interfaces; a bold choice on the one hand, and on the other a sign of a slight change of direction regarding some solutions of the main storyline, which reveals the intent of wanting to deal with situations that contribute, in a substantial way, to the glow up of all the protagonists. And the show itself. The only flaw, which continues to be one of the most defective pieces, are some sub-plots, such as that of Preacher or Jack (for the latter relates only to his past traumas), which – although intertwined with the context – appear to be narrative lines or repetitive or tasteless. A burden on history which, if eliminated, would only benefit the Virgin River.

However, what makes the series truly special, and therefore also Virgin River Season 5, is both how it addresses every worry or problem of its characters, very attentive and thoughtful, and its ability to give us an idyllic dimension capable of cradling us. But let’s go in order. Meanwhile, this season also presents us with some main characters– such as Mel, Jack, Hope, and Doc – dealing with increasingly intricate situations in their lives. The first to “resolve” himself (fortunately) is Jack, giving up more space to Mel who, despite experiencing yet another shock, appreciates seeing her rise from her ashes. A conscious growth that comes from nowhere but is the source of the work carried out on the character since the first season, and of which no detail or loose end has been left out. Understanding, facing, and stopping to analyze are the three acts with which the show has always approached its characters, explored their psychology, and thus allowed a credible development of each of them. Despite sometimes being surrounded by events that are a little too unrealistic.

Virgin River Season 5, despite being cloaked in more drama, does not lose its nature: hope, the sense of community, and the motto of “unity is strength” always come into play, which has never been more valid than in this season, and which has always been the driving force of history. There is also no shortage of the usual warm atmospheres and photographs, the milieu welcoming, and the fighting and confident spirit of every single protagonist, all elements that make Virgin River a comfortable reality, in which everything seems possible to overcome while implanting intense themes within it, such as Mel’s abortion, Brie’s rape, the loss of Jack and Doc’s illness. But this is perhaps his gift: being able to be in a safe, pleasant place, with suspended time, without precluding the possibility of being profound. This is how this first part of Virgin River Season 5 should also be looked at having no pretensions, moved only by the desire to let yourself be caressed.

Sometimes, magic can also be found in shows that are not very elaborate but have a big heart and good intentions. So, in the end, he can even be forgiven for some redundancy. Virgin River changes the showrunner for this fifth season but does not move away from the format that was so successful among the Netflix audience. The series continues to follow the tormented events of the characters in a sort of melodrama which is a patchwork of existences, troubles, mistakes, and challenges to overcome, but told in such a way that everything in the end is reassuring, enveloping, and consolatory, just like a beautiful quilt in the heart of winter. Everything contributes to the feeling that, despite difficulties, problems, and even natural disasters, everything will be fine, because you can always rely on yourself and your willpower, and a small community of people targeted by fate but with a big heart.

In Virgin River Season 5 there is also a passage in which all this is explained perfectly by one of the characters, Brie, who, at a certain point in her difficult battle, is entrusted with a sort of long enunciation of the philosophy that pervades a little the whole series. The heroes of everyday life, the courage to face life and the confidence to be able to overcome obstacles, the heroism of those who always choose to be on the right side at all costs, and, in short, the optimism of the will. This is Virgin River ever since we have known her, ever since we followed the arrival of the nurse and young widow Mel on these lush and fairy-tale mountains, and this is what we also find in this new chapter. However, there is a passage in which the very personal events, which in previous seasons have always outclassed those relating to the more ‘public’, community problems (such as those relating to the criminal activity of the sawmill), find their balance, and individual events become one with those of the community.

What brings them together is a natural disaster: the fire that threatens to wipe out the town. The mobilization to save lives and destinies pushes all the characters involved and the screenwriters who wrote them to take a leap, expose themselves, and bring out their characteristics and singularities in a more decisive way. It doesn’t last long, but the action they are forced into certainly outlines its complexities much better than usual. As per tradition, even in these first 10 episodes of the fifth season, there is no shortage of twists on the finale and the finale, to which Virgin River has gotten us used to it. The series will please those who have followed it with satisfaction since 2019 and will continue with this new season to leave cold to those who do not fully understand its success.

Virgin River Season 5 Part 1 Review: The Last Words

Even with a few too many storylines and some lengthy moments, Virgin River Season 5 confirms itself as a season with the sole intent of bringing lightness and warmth into the daily lives of spectators, never forgetting to address, at the same time, important and very current issues, with extreme delicacy and sense of hope. At the end of the review of the fifth season of Virgin River, we go out of our way to say that it is even richer than season 4, even if more realistic and painful, perhaps due to a change at the top, the passing of the baton from the original showrunner Sue Tenney to Patrick Sean Smith. The imaginary town of Virgin River will have to overcome important tests as will Mel, forced by life to roll up her sleeves once again. Season 5 is exhaustive and satisfying even without its two final episodes but the final judgment is postponed until the end of November.

Virgin River Season 5 Part 1 Review: Even Richer Than Season 4 Even if More Realistic and Painful - Filmyhype

Director: Monika Mitchell, Felipe Rodriguez

Date Created: 2023-09-07 16:59

Editor's Rating:
3.5

Pros

• The acting is still top-notch. Alexandra Breckenridge and Martin Henderson are great as Mel and Jack, and the supporting cast is also very good.
• The storylines are engaging and heartwarming. There are some tear-jerking moments, but there's also plenty of humor and romance.
• The scenery is beautiful. The show is filmed in Vancouver, and the scenery is just stunning.

Cons

• The pacing can be slow at times. The show sometimes drags on a bit, and it can be hard to stay engaged.
• Some of the storylines are predictable. There are a few twists and turns, but overall, the storylines are pretty predictable.
• The show can be a bit too saccharine at times. The show is very sweet and heartwarming, but it can sometimes be a bit too much.